My Journey and Success with the IBS Audio Program Hypnotherapy Program
#224850 - 11/14/05 12:02 PM

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IBS really ruined my whole life, and just like everyone here, I felt torn between being grateful I didn't have something "serious" and guilty for feeling like I was dying anyway. People treat you differently when they know that IBS is something that isn't "serious" as in life-threatening, but as my gastroenterologist told me that he could treat the pain of his colon cancer patients better than the IBS patients.

I was officially diagnosed in 1988, after about five years of not knowing why I was having increasing severe diarrhea and abdominal pain. With the birth of my daughter that same year, I thought I better get tested, that maybe I did have some digestive disease, but several colonoscopies later, it was confirmed as IBS.

Trips to the Mayo Clinic and two other gastroenterologists further confirmed that every single prescription and OTC medication had little or no effect, and only short-term, if any.

Over the next 12 years or so, I was prescribed various IBS medications by my gastroenterologists and internal medicine physicians - some examples: every antispasmodic including Hyoscyamine (Levbid/Levsin, and Levsin SL), Dicyclomine (Bentyl), as well as Donnatal, Tincture of Belladonna, etc., several diets and diet modifications/eliminations, fiber, the anti-depressant Amitriptyline (Elavil), various SSRIs (Prozac, Effexor and others), Codeine, Colpermin (enteric coated peppermint capsules), various other Antidiarrheal and/or Antiperistaltic prescriptions or OTC medications, as well as non-label use of prescriptions such as Seldane, which has a side-effect of constipation to combat my extreme diarrhea. There were other medications, and herbals as well.

My gastroenterologist finally told me that he had exhausted his treatment options, and to go look up other treatments on the internet. In my search, I found out about the use of clinical hypnotherapy for IBS through a fellow BB IBS sufferer who used it successfully, but I thought this method was pretty far-fetched and seemed to be absurd to me.

But I was desperate so I tried this method as a last resort in the summer of 2000. This was the IBS Audio Program 100, which is a set of CDs with a specific schedule of several sessions that you listen to. Due to the severity of my severe refractory IBS, as well as several non related surgeries, I listened to the program 3 times. Each time I saw better improvement – I was the worst case scenario. Mike told me that the hypnotherapy program worked first on those health issues and stressors in my life that were most pressing to my overall health – and that the IBS was dealt with last in my case – but I persevered, and my symptoms greatly reduced. That was over three years ago, and now I can actually leave the house, whereas before, I raised my children "through the bathroom door!" I had attacks of diarrhea and pain lasting for hours on end, sometimes six hours a day, almost every day, never knowing when...even if I ate small amounts, the attacks would come out of the blue.

I am now able to function – if I do get an attack, most of the time it will subside within minutes, if not seconds – IBS is no longer the severe issue that it was, and though not a cure, for me, it was the best thing I could have done to treat my IBS on a holistic level.

My IBS cost me a whole lost life...events and special celebrations for my kids, just taking them to routine doctor and dentist appointments was an ordeal, and my marriage suffered and collapsed in part because of it. I went from being able to travel and talk professionally in front of large groups of people, to being just about housebound.

This program saved my life. And I now help the author of the program, clinical hypnotherapist Michael Mahoney, as a result of my gratitude for getting my life back. As one of the slowest persons to respond, and with very severe symptoms, I feel that I do need to pass on what was given to me and encourage others to not lose hope. That's what worked for me and I hope this helps someone too. Thanks for letting me share!

Marilyn, just wanted to say that I had read your story previously (not knowing/connecting your story to who you were posting back to me) and kudos to you for all that you went through. I am glad that you have found your way and I am also sorry that you feel as if you "missed" a chunk of your life and had a difficult marriage. I can definitely empathize to some degreee b/c I used to stand up in front of crowds too and go on adventurous outings, etc....(I call it when I used to be "fun"). I hope that you are truly enjoying life now that you are stable and my thoughts are with you too.

--------------------Originally IBS-D for a million years!
Then IBS-A, Now a transformed slightly C

Hi Marilyn,I'm thinking about getting the program but was just curious what your attacks are like now...you say they last a few minutes or seconds...do you get D now?I have the most problems in the mornings before going to work and have loose BMs sometimes D. I go a few times (2-6 times) at home and then maybe a few more times (1-3) on the way to work or when getting to work. This could last anywhere from 20 min to 90 min overall.

During the day I also get very hot and nauseous at times (it is sometimes before a BM and sometimes not) and it could last anywhere from a few minutes to an hour.

Will the program address these symptoms. I'm just starting to read about the program so I don't know too much about it.

Thanks for sharing your story...It is really encouraging and motivating

Thanks for your encouraging words about my story. Well, I guess the main thing to say is that the program does address the symptoms that you mention as long as they are a part of your IBS and not caused by other conditions/causes.

It is importaint to make sure your symptoms have been diagnosed as IBS by a physician.

There is no way to know if the program will address your specific symptoms for sure, but research shows that this method can be very helpful for most of the folks who have used it - some of us need an extra round or two for best results, while others see results sooner.

While it is encouraging to know of all the different successes with this program, including my own, you can only compare your own progress with yourself, but it is helpful to know that others before you have done well. But we all progress at different speeds and to various degrees due to the severity of the IBS, the duration, and other life factors, etc. so comparisons can be helpful, but you may even do better!

Even 7 years or so of formally completing the program, my attacks are still way more improved that the house-bound several hours a day urgency and pain I had origianlly. Your IBS sounds about as severe as mine was, so if you do decide to get the program, be patient, persevere and keep with it even if progress is slow - many many people who have had debilitating IBS similar to our symptoms, have had very good progress - some have even walked away from IBS - so there is good hope.

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